


Book 2: Midgard

by kittys_fic



Category: Loki - Fandom, Loki laufeyson - Fandom, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Anxiety, F/M, Fluff, Infinity Gems, Mild Language, Mild Sexual Content, Mild Smut, Non-Graphic Violence, Past Abuse, Pre-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Sequel, Sequel to Book 1, joining the avengers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-20
Updated: 2018-03-29
Packaged: 2019-04-04 21:37:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 10,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14029257
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kittys_fic/pseuds/kittys_fic
Summary: You, Loki and Thor have arrived on Earth and meet up with the Avengers. A new threat has arrived which the Avengers must try to defeat. In the process, you make new friends, reunite with old friends, and discover more about yourself.





	1. The Phone

**Author's Note:**

> This is not necessarily my take on Infinity War, but is rather meant to be more of a prelude to it. The exact time frame when these events take place is uncertain. I leave it to the reader to make their own assumptions.

“Oh thank the gods for a working phone!” you say as you look down at the smartphone in your hand, tapping on the screen and opening your email. “I guess there was one thing about this place I did miss.”

Loki looks up from the book he’s reading. “I don’t understand the appeal of those infernal contraptions.”

“Oh man, you’re so lucky you don’t have one of these,” you reply. “They’re so addictive.” You scroll through the list of unread emails in your inbox. You’re looking for one email in particular, from Tony Stark.

Loki gets up and walks over to where you’re standing by the window of the hotel room. He stands behind you and puts his arms around your waist as you pore over your inbox. He kisses the top of your head. “You know, if I had any say in the matter, you wouldn’t need to give that thing any attention.”

You look up from your phone and turn around to face him, his arms still around you. “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? For me to pay attention to nothing but you?”

He leans down and kisses you, and you momentarily forget about your email. You close your eyes and melt in his arms as his lips press against yours.

_Ding!_

You open your eyes and break away from Loki. “Hang on, I got an email.”

Loki rolls his eyes as you turn away from him. You open the email. It’s from Tony. You glance over the text quickly and break out in a huge smile.

“It’s from Tony Stark,” you tell Loki. “He’s agreed to let us stay at the compound.”

“Oh, joy,” says Loki. “I’m sure he has a nice room for me down in the dungeons.”

“Knock it off,” you laugh. “I’m sure everything will be okay. Just stay out of trouble.”

“Oh, you know I can’t promise that, darling,” Loki says with a grin.

“He’s sending a car to come get us,” you continue. “It should be here in a couple hours.”

“A couple of hours? That’s plenty of time,” smirks Loki.

“For what?”

Loki takes the phone out of your hand and places it on the nearby end table. He turns back to you and starts to undo the buttons of your blouse. You giggle. He slips the blouse off your shoulders and it falls to the floor.

He grabs you and pushes you onto the bed, laughing. You throw your head back and laugh also as you hit the mattress. He climbs onto the bed and kneels over you, straddling your hips. He looks into your eyes, reaches down and strokes the skin just below your collarbone.

“So beautiful,” he says.

“Oh, stop,” you reply, blushing.

“Even more beautiful when you blush,” he says with a smile. He leans down and starts to kiss your neck. You close your eyes and sigh happily, reaching up to remove his shirt.

Suddenly your phone beeps. You have a text message.

“Ignore that,” Loki warns you. “Or there will be consequences.”

You look up into his eyes and nod, biting your lip playfully. He resumes kissing your neck, his lips moving down the length of it to your shoulder. He then starts on your collarbone, then moves to your chest just above your breasts. His kisses are magical, and you start to feel that familiar feeling of sparks igniting within you. You thrust your fingers into his long hair and moan softly.

The phone beeps again.

“Damnit,” you say. Loki puts a hand over your mouth. His other hand travels down between your legs, past the waistband of your panties. His fingers start to tease you. You moan louder, the sound muffled by the hand over your mouth. You feel yourself growing very warm and wet. Loki smiles a devious smile. You reach down to undo his pants.

The phone starts ringing.

“God DAMNIT!” you yell.

Loki closes his eyes and sighs. “Go, see who it is,” he says begrudgingly.

You reach over the the end table and pick up the phone. It’s Tony calling. You hit Accept.

“Hi Tony.”

“Hey kiddo, you get my texts?” Tony’s voice says.

“Sorry, I was a little… busy,” you reply. You look over at Loki, who is sitting on the edge of the bed, his arms crossed.

“Yeah well, get yourself un-busy. I’m waiting for you guys downstairs,” says Tony.

“Already?” You stand up quickly and start looking for your clothes. “You’re early. Give me like five minutes to get ready.” 

Loki sighs and gets up to get dressed as well. “I’ll go find my brother,” he says as he does up his belt.

“Thanks,” you reply as you button up your blouse. “I’ll meet you out front.” You throw a few things into your bag and look around for your shoes.


	2. The Arrival

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Loki and Thor arrive at the Avengers compound with Tony and are given a tour, where you meet a few new people.

You hurry through the lobby of the hotel and out the revolving door. You see a long, black limousine parked out front, and Tony Stark standing next to it, conversing with Thor. Loki is standing a short distance away, looking out of place.

“Hi guys,” you say breathlessly as you walk up to the limousine. “Sorry it took me so long. I couldn’t find my shoes.”

Tony looks down at your feet. “Looks like you found them. Get in.”

All four of you pile into the back of the limousine. Thor sits next to Tony, and you sit across from them, next to Loki. You notice how uncomfortable Loki looks, so you take his hand, interlacing your fingers with his.

“I wasn’t expecting Mr. Doom and Gloom here to be with you,” says Tony, gesturing at Loki. “Do you think you can behave yourself, sir?”

Loki says nothing, but just glowers in the general direction of Tony.

“Talkative one, isn’t he?” says Tony with a frown. “Oh well. We should be up at the compound in about an hour.”

The drive goes by uneventfully. You spend the majority of it looking out the window at the passing scenery, listening to Tony and Thor catch up. Loki says nothing, but continues to hold your hand.

Finally the limousine arrives at the compound. You get out of the car and marvel at the size of the whole thing. “Wow,” you say.

“Come on, I’ll give you the grand tour,” Tony says.

As you walk in through the main door, a young woman greets you. She is petite and pretty, with long reddish hair. She smiles at you and holds out her hand.

“Hello,” she says to you. “I’m Wanda. You must be the new girl.” She speaks with a Slavic accent.

“Hi Wanda,” you say, shaking her hand. “Yes, I’m [Y/N].”

“So nice to have another female in the place,” says Wanda. “Let me know when you’re free, and maybe we can talk more.”

“Sure, I’d like that,” you reply.

“Don’t be giving her all the gossip right away, Wanda,” says Tony. “We don’t want her to run away screaming just yet.”

Wanda laughs and heads off down the hallway. You watch her walk away. You can’t help but feel strangely drawn to her. You only just met her, but you feel like you might have a lot in common with her already. Maybe it’s because you’re both female, or maybe it’s because she looks to be about your age. Regardless, you definitely want to seek her out when you get a free moment.

Tony shows you various rooms all around the compound. The place seems like a giant maze, and you know you’re going to get lost in it sooner or later. You look up at Thor, who is walking next to you.

“Thor, you’ve been here before, right?” you ask him.

“Aye, I have,” says Thor.

“Good,” you say. “Then you can help me when I get lost in here.”

Thor chuckles and claps his hand on your shoulder. “Certainly, my lady. It did take me some time to get used to this place. You’ll get used to it too.”

The four of you enter a large common area. Two people are sitting on one of the couches, a man and a woman. They look up when you enter.

The man stands up. “Hello Thor, good to see you again,” he says. “I see you brought your brother. That’s… unusual. And who is this?” he says, gesturing at you.

“This is [Y/N],” says Tony. “She’s going to be joining us.”

“Oh, excellent. Hi, [Y/N]. I’m Clint,” says the man. “That’s Natasha.”

“Hi,” you reply. “I’ve heard of both of you. Nice to finally meet you.”

“Hello,” says Natasha. “Let us know if you need anything.” She raises her eyebrow at Loki, who is standing behind Thor looking utterly uncomfortable. You feel bad for him. You walk over to where he is standing and take his hand.

Clint notices this. “Wait a minute, are you two…?”

“Yes,” says Loki emphatically. You look up at him, somewhat startled. This is the first word you’ve heard him say all day.

Tony rolls his eyes. “Oooookay,” he says. “That’s the tour. Now I’ll show you to your rooms and you can settle in before the briefing.”

The four of you walk down a long hallway, Tony leading the way. After what seems like an eternity he finally stops in front of a door and opens it.

“Here you go, [Y/N],” he says to you. “Make yourself at home.”

You look at the room, then look at Tony, then at Loki. “Um…”

“Everyone gets their own room,” says Tony. “That’s the rule. We don’t want any funny stuff happening.”

You smile sheepishly and shrug your shoulders at Loki. He gives you a wink as he, Thor and Tony continue down the hall.

You walk into your new room and look around. It’s nice enough, with plenty of light, a big bed, spacious closet and adjoining bathroom. You put your bag down on the bed.

“I’m a little further down the hall,” you hear Loki’s voice say. Since he’s not in the room with you, you assume he’s talking to you inside your head again. “My brother is next door to me.”

“Come see me when you can,” you say to the air, and start unpacking.


	3. The Anxiety

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Loki discuss your anxiety about joining the Avengers, and later you get to know Wanda.

You finish hanging up your clothes in the closet and turn back to the bag on the bed. You pull a couple more items out and put them aside.

You sit down on the edge of the bed and put your head in your hands. You recognize that old feeling of fear and uncertainty starting to well up inside you. You can feel your heart beating faster than usual, and it’s a little hard to breathe. You try to take a couple of deep breaths. You look down at your hands and notice they are shaking. You clench them into fists to try to get the shaking to stop.

_Come on_ , you think to yourself. _Not now. Please._ But the feeling won’t go away.

You look at the bottom of the bag. You sigh, reach into the bag, and pull out an orange prescription bottle.

You take out a small white pill from the bottle and look at it. You hadn’t really needed these pills while you were on Asgard, but since you’ve been back on Earth you’ve found yourself needing them a lot more often. You pop the pill in your mouth and swallow hard.

“What is that for?” you hear Loki’s voice say. You turn around and see him standing in the middle of your room.

“You ever hear of knocking?” you say as you stand up.

“My apologies, darling,” he says. “I didn’t think we had anything to hide from each other.” He takes the prescription bottle out of your hand and looks at it. “What is this for?”

“Anxiety,” you say, feeling a bit embarrassed.

His eyes turn to yours. “And what is it that’s causing you anxiety?” he inquires, a somewhat concerned look on his face.

“Oh, I don’t know. What do you think? I’m in a strange place, surrounded by people I don’t know very well. You know how that makes me feel.” You want to cry. “And to top everything off, we’re going to be thrown into a dangerous situation. I just… don’t know if I can do this.”

Loki puts the bottle down, walks over to you and puts his hands on your shoulders. “You _can_ do this. This is what my brother and I have been training you for. You know your abilities, and how to defend yourself. You’ll be fine.”

“And what if I’m not?” You can feel those damn tears starting to form in your eyes again. You wipe them away quickly with the back of your hand.

“You’ve got me,” says Loki, pulling you into a hug. “You’ve got me, and my brother, and the rest of these ridiculous Avengers to help you if you need it.”

“I hate this, Loki,” you say, resting your head on his chest. “I want to be strong. I want to be brave. But then I hear that old familiar voice in my head, telling me I’m nothing.”

“What did I tell you? Those people cannot hurt you anymore. I won’t allow it.” You feel his arms tighten around you. “You are mine, and I will not let any harm come to you.”

You sigh heavily, not sure what to say.

Loki releases you from his hug and looks you in the eyes. “Have you eaten at all today?”

You think for a second. “No, I don’t think I have.”

“Come on then, let’s go see if we can find the kitchen.” Loki takes your hand and leads you out the door into the hallway. You notice Wanda walking in your direction.

“Wanda,” you call out. “Where’s the kitchen?”

“I’ll show you,” she says. “Follow me. Who’s this?”

“This is… Loki,” you tell her, cringing internally.

“Oh, _this_ is Loki? I would have expected someone much more menacing,” Wanda says with a smirk. “He’s actually kind of cute.”

Loki raises an eyebrow.

Wanda leads you down a couple of hallways until you finally reach the kitchen. “Help yourself to whatever’s in here,” she says.

“Thank you,” you say, opening the fridge. “Hey… how long have you been here?”

“About a year,” Wanda replies. “Why?”

“Oh, I was just wondering how long it took you to feel like you fit in here. I feel very much like I don’t belong. I only know a couple of people. I only just came into my abilities and I don’t have a lot of confidence yet, I guess.”

“Ah,” says Wanda. “I was born with my abilities. But even so, I do feel like a bit of a freak sometimes. Especially since my brother died.”

“Your brother?” says Loki. “What happened?”

Wanda sighs. “It’s a long story. He was my twin. We had a bond. I miss him every day. Without him around, I do admit my confidence suffers too.”

“I’m sorry,” says Loki.

“What are your abilities?” you ask Wanda.

“I can do a few things,” Wanda replies. “Move things with my mind. Manipulate energy fields. That sort of thing.” She raises her hands and a red aura appears in front of her. A bottle of water flies out of the open refrigerator door and into her hand.

“That’s pretty neat,” you say. You then hold out your hand, pulling the bottle out of Wanda’s hand and into yours. A few blue sparks fly from the bottle as it flies through the air.

“Cool!” exclaims Wanda. “What else can you do?”

You toss the water bottle back to her. You look around the kitchen and spot a barstool. You put your hand on the top of it, and it erupts into flames. Wanda screams. You chuckle and snap your fingers at the stool and the flames go out, leaving behind a charred, smoking tangle of wood.

“Let’s hope you don’t set off the fire alarm,” Wanda says with a bit of a giggle. “Yeah, you’ll fit right in here with the rest of us.”


	4. The Friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You run into your old friend, Steve Rogers, and the two of you tell Loki a little more about your past.

You and Wanda continue talking for a while as you eat. You learn a little more about her abilities, and how she came to join the Avengers. Loki sits across the table from the two of you, listening to the conversation but not saying much. He seems to have other things on his mind.

You finish eating and get up to clean your dishes. Just as you are about to walk over to the sink, you notice someone enter the kitchen.

You nearly drop your plate when you realize who it is. “Steve!”

Steve Rogers gives a big smile. “Hey kid! How the hell are you?”

You rush up to Steve and throw your arms out, and he gives you a big bear hug, lifting you up off your feet in the process.

Loki is not amused. “You know him?” he says, raising his eyebrow.

“Sure do,” you say to Loki. “He’s the one who got me the hell away from my miserable family.”

“Yeah,” says Steve. “Found her at the bus station, all alone.” He turns to you. “You must have been what, seventeen?”

“Yep,” you reply. “Seventeen and scared out of my mind.”

“Poor kid,” says Steve. “She was beaten and bloodied and looking to run far away. I convinced her to go to a home for runaway teens.”

“That place saved my life,” you say.

Loki listens to you and Steve talk with a look of particular interest. “This is the first I’m hearing about this,” he says.

You turn to Loki. “I spent a couple years at that home, and never lost contact with Steve,” you continue. “When I was able to live on my own, he introduced me to Tony, who gave me a job.”

“She was Tony’s star pupil,” says Steve, grinning and clapping you on the shoulder.

“I see,” says Loki. He looks at you. “And how long after that did my brother find you?”

“Maybe a year? I remember Tony telling me that Thor had been in contact with him, and it wasn’t long after that I was being whisked off to Asgard.”

“How was that, by the way?” Steve asks you.

“Enlightening,” you reply. “I learned a lot about myself that I never knew. And it turns out I have these really cool abilities.”

Steve laughs. “Does that smoking barstool over there have anything to do with that?”

“Sorry about that,” you say. “I was showing Wanda…”

“I actually know all about what you can do,” says Steve. “Thor kept in contact with us the whole time you were over there. He’s really proud of you, you know.”

“As am I,” says Loki.

“Stop it, guys, you’re gonna make me blush!” you say with a giggle.

Steve looks at Loki. “So, what are you doing here?” he asks him. “Last time I saw you, things didn’t go so well.”

Loki rests his elbows on the table and folds his hands. “I’ve been duly punished for my actions.”

“He’s changed, Steve,” you say. “He’s not the same man who you saw in New York.”

“Let’s hope so,” says Steve warily. “Well, I gotta go take care of some things. Briefing is in an hour. See you then.”

“See you then,” you say as Steve leaves the room. Wanda gets up to leave as well.

“See you in an hour,” she says.

You wave goodbye to her and go over to the table where Loki is sitting. You sit down next to him and take his hand.

“I’m sorry you have to put up with all this crap,” you tell him as you interlace your fingers through his. “You’ve got to be really uncomfortable.”

“I’ll get over it,” Loki says. He looks at you and brushes the fingers of his free hand against your cheek. “I wish I had been there for you when you were younger.”

“That would have been nice,” you say. “But what’s past is past. What’s important is, you’re here now.”

“Yes,” says Loki. “The past is in the past. For both of us.”


	5. The Briefing

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and the other Avengers are briefed on the current situation. It turns out that Loki knows more about it that was previously thought.

“We don’t know who he is yet,” says Tony to the group gathered in the common area. “We do know that he wants something. We’re trying to figure that out.”

Dr. Bruce Banner, who is standing next to Tony, clicks a button on a remote, and a panel opens on the far wall, revealing a large screen. He clicks another button, and a map appears on the screen.

“So far,” says Bruce, “There have been sightings here, here, and here.” Three points light up on the map. “He seems to bring a wave of destruction wherever he appears. Several deaths have been reported in connection to his appearances.”

“My buddy Peter has run into him,” says Tony. “You remember Peter, a.k.a. Spiderman? Yeah, he tells me that this dude is something else.”

“Surveillance cameras caught this image of him,” says Bruce, clicking his remote. A grainy photo appears on the screen.

“He’s huge!” says Sam Wilson, who is sitting on one of the couches. “What is he?”

You look closer at the surveillance image. He doesn’t look like a human being. He is much larger, and his skin is a weird shade of purple. He is wearing unusual looking armor as well.

“I’ve got a couple of friends in the city who are keeping an eye out for us,” says Tony. “Should this giant raisin show up again, we’ll be the first to know.”

“Do we know what he wants?” asks Sam.

“Not yet,” says Tony. “But hopefully my friends will find that out too.”

“That’s Thanos,” Loki says from the back. You didn’t know he was even in the room. Everyone turns around to look at him.

“You know this guy?” Tony says.

“We’ve met,” says Loki.

“What does he want?” asks Bruce.

“The Tesseract, among other things,” says Loki. “I was hoping to avoid him here on Earth, but it appears that will not be the case.” He looks at Thor, who looks back at him sympathetically.

“Well, then,” says Tony. “It looks like you might be of use after all.”

You look at Loki as he studies the image on the screen. You see what you believe to be genuine fear in his eyes, something you have never seen before. “Loki, are you okay?” you say to him telepathically.

“Don’t worry about me, darling,” you hear his voice in your head. But you do worry. You would be devastated if anything were to happen to him. And you get the feeling that something just might with this Thanos fellow.

“Last time we saw the Tesseract, Thor here was bringing it to Asgard for safekeeping,” says Steve. “Thor, do you still have it?”

“Aye,” says Thor. “It’s safe on Asgard.” He looks at Loki. “Right, Loki?”

Loki looks even more frightened than before. “Right,” he says softly, unable to look directly at his brother.

“Okay,” says Steve. “Then we have nothing to worry about. Right, Loki?”

Loki looks like he wants to curl up and die right there. Everyone is staring at him. He closes his eyes. “Right,” he says, even more softly than before.

“That’s all for now, guys,” says Tony. “We’ll let you know when Thanos pops up again.” Everyone gets up to leave.

Loki makes a beeline for the door, and you follow after him. “Loki,” you call to him, “Tell me what’s going on.”

“Not here,” says Loki. “Let’s go back to your room. Oh, blast it, how the hell do we get back to your room?”

“This way,” you reply as you take Loki’s hand and close your eyes, picturing your room in your mind. The hallway around you begins to dissolve, and a second later the two of you are in your room.

Loki smiles. “Couldn’t have done that better myself.”

“Loki,” you say. “I know you’re scared. Tell me why.”

Loki sighs, and sits down in the chair near your bed. “You are starting to know me too well,” he says. “The truth is, I have reason to believe that Thanos would like to see me dead.”

“Why?” you ask, sitting down on the edge of the bed, facing him.

“It’s a long story, darling,” he replies. “Suffice to say that we had a deal, and I did not keep up my end of it.”

“Is that why Thanos is here? To find you?” You feel a twinge of anxiety again.

“I doubt that,” says Loki. “He doesn’t know I’m here. At least, I don’t think so.”

“How… powerful is Thanos?” you ask.

“More powerful than anyone in this building,” Loki replies.

You feel your chest tighten. “And how are we supposed to defeat him?”

“That… remains to be seen,” Loki says with a frown.


	6. The Stones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You learn more about the infinity stones, and Wanda has some concerns about Vision. Later, you tell Loki how you really feel about him.

You and Loki continue to talk into the night. He tells you about the Tesseract, and what it can do. You listen intently as he tells you about the infinity stones, and why Thanos is looking for them. You wonder how someone like Loki could have gotten messed up in all of this. You ask him as much, and he tells you a little about what happened in New York, but you can tell he is being intentionally vague about the details.

There is a knock at the door. You get up to go see who it is. Loki remains seated.

You open the door, and standing there is Wanda, with Vision. “[Y/N],” says Wanda, “Is Loki here? We need to talk to him.”

“Yes, he’s here,” you reply, and let them in.

“Loki,” says Wanda, “The Tesseract contains an infinity stone, correct?”

“Yes,” says Loki.

“And you said Thanos was looking for the Tesseract, right?”

“Correct,” says Loki.

“Well,” says Wanda nervously, “Do you think he wants the other infinity stones as well? Like this one?” She points to Vision’s forehead.

“Wanda,” says Vision.

“It’s very likely,” says Loki.

“That’s what I was afraid of,” says Wanda. She turns to Vision. “What are we going to do?”

“We’re well protected here,” says Vision. “And I think I can deal with Thanos.”

“I’m not so sure,” says Wanda. She looks like she is near tears.

“We’ll be okay,” you tell her. But deep down you’re not so sure yourself.

Wanda turns to you and throws her arms around you, burying her face in your shoulder. You can’t tell if she’s crying or not, but you put your arms around her and try your best to console her. Vision steps closer and puts a hand on her shoulder as well. Loki remains seated, studying the scene in front of him.

“Don’t let anything happen to him,” Wanda whispers to you.

Wanda releases her hug and turns to leave the room, with Vision following her out the door. When they are gone, you turn back to Loki. “I don’t know if I’m going to be able to sleep, quite frankly,” you say to him.

“It’s a lot to take in,” Loki says.

“Stay here tonight?” you ask him.

“Of course,” he replies.

As you get ready for bed, you think about all the fear you have seen today. First, from Loki, and then from Wanda, and even a little bit from Vision. You wonder what you’re getting yourself into. You feel the anxiety start to grow again, and wonder if you should take another pill. You eventually decide against it, hoping that Loki’s presence instead will help you feel better.

You climb into bed and Loki lies down next to you. You curl up against him and he puts his arms around you. You reach up and kiss his cheek.

“Loki,” you say, “I want you to know that I don’t hold anything against you. I know you’ve done some seemingly evil things in the past, but I don’t think that was really you, you know?”

Loki says nothing, but tightens his arms around you and kisses your forehead.

“You’ve shown me nothing but kindness,” you continue. “You’ve made me a better person, too. And for that…” You pause. “I love you.”

Loki smiles. “That means a great deal to me, hearing you say that,” he says.

“I mean it,” you say.

“Do you still wear that bracelet?” he asks you.

“Um, yeah, it’s right here.” You hold up your wrist, showing the gold and emerald bracelet that keeps you from having nightmares. “Why?”

“Here,” he says, and touches the bracelet. A green glow emanates from his fingers and causes the bracelet to glow as well.

Suddenly you feel very sleepy. You yawn, and close your eyes. And right before you drift off to sleep, you hear Loki whisper, “I love you too.”

You awaken the next morning with Loki still next to you. “Good morning,” he says. “Sleep well?”

“Yes,” you reply. “Thank you for that.”

“It was the least I could do,” Loki says.

You climb out of bed and go to the closet to look for something to wear. There is a knock at the door.

“Hey kiddo, you awake?” you hear Tony’s voice say.

You look at Loki. “Disappear,” you whisper. He does.

You go to the door and open it. Tony looks at you standing there in your pajamas and grins. “How was your first night?” he asks you.

“Fine,” you reply.

“I was half expecting Mr. Tall, Dark and Brooding to be in here with you,” he says. “Anyway, get dressed. We’re going to pay a visit to Doctor Strange.”


	7. The Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You, Loki, Tony and Bruce go to warn Doctor Strange about Thanos, and wouldn’t you know it, Thanos shows up to make things interesting.

“Call me Stephen,” says Doctor Strange as he shakes your hand. “Tony has told me a lot about you.”

“Hi Stephen,” you say. “It’s nice to meet you.”

You, Tony, Bruce and Loki are all standing in the foyer of a large house in the city. Tony insisted that Loki tag along because he thought he might be able to better explain the current situation to Doctor Strange. As usual, Loki looks utterly uncomfortable standing with the others. He stands stiffly, and his arms are crossed.

“Stephen,” says Tony. “We wanted to bring you up to speed on what’s going on. We have reason to believe you might be in danger.”

“Me? Why?” says Doctor Strange.

Loki speaks up. “That,” he says, pointing to the amulet around Doctor Strange’s neck.

“The Eye of Agamotto? What about it?”

“It’s an infinity stone,” says Loki. “Thanos is looking for them. He wants one from me as well.”

“Interesting,” says Doctor Strange, touching the amulet thoughtfully. “Thank you for telling me this. What does Thanos want with the stones?”

“We’re not sure,” says Bruce.

“We may need your help in dealing with Thanos,” says Tony. “We’re going to need all the help we can get.”

“You have my word,” says Doctor Strange. “I’ll be there when the time comes.”

“Do you hear that?” says Bruce.

“Hear what?” Tony replies.

“I thought I heard something outside,” says Bruce, and he heads for the door. Everyone else follows him. Bruce opens the door. “Oh, shit.”

The scene outside is one of utter devastation. Cars are flipped over in the street, with one car engulfed in flames. The pavement has been torn up in several places. People are running around in fear and panic.

“Come on,” says Doctor Strange. “Let’s see what’s going on.”

The five of you head down the street, following the trail of destruction. More overturned cars, more torn up pavement. You look at the people running away from the destruction, trying to see if anyone is hurt.

A couple blocks further down, you see him. “Thanos,” you say.

Next to you, Bruce begins to transform into The Hulk. Thanos turns around and sees the group of you standing there. He towers over the lot of you. You look up at his odd purple face and feel your heart beat faster. You clench your fists, and your hands start to glow with blue flame. Loki sees this and puts a hand on your shoulder.

“Let me handle this,” he says to the group. He takes a few steps forward. Thanos looks down at him.

“If it isn’t the god of mischief,” Thanos says mockingly. “How fortunate to have found you among these pathetic mortals.”

“Thanos,” says Loki, “It’s me you want. Surely we can work something out. Leave these people alone.”

Thanos reaches his huge hand out and slaps Loki backward. Loki goes flying through the air and lands several yards away on the pavement.

“Loki!” you scream as you watch sail past you. You turn to Thanos, feeling a rage starting to build inside you, like none you have ever felt before. It’s as if a thousand fires have been set inside your soul. It scares you. 

You hold your hands up and conjure a large blue fireball. You hurl the fireball at Thanos, hoping it will do some damage, but unfortunately it just bounces off of him. “Shit,” you say to yourself.

You look over at the others. Hulk is going after Thanos. Thanos simply flicks him away like he’s some sort of bug. Hulk becomes enraged and goes after Thanos again, only to get flung backwards again.

You run over to where Loki has landed. You crouch down to see if he’s alright.

“I’m okay,” he grumbles, getting up and dusting himself off. He turns to you and takes your hand. “We need to get out of here.”

You look back to the others again. You see Tony say something to Doctor Strange, who then holds up his hands. A large orange circle of light opens up under Thanos. Thanos drops down through the circle, into the ground and out of sight.

“That should hold him for a while,” Doctor Strange calls out to you and Loki. “Get out of here!”

Loki looks at you. “How far can you teleport?” he asks, still holding onto your hand.

“I don’t know,” you reply.

“Can you get us back to the compound?”

“I’ll try,” you answer, and close your eyes, picturing the compound in your mind. You feel Loki’s hand tighten around yours as the street around you begins to dissolve. A few seconds later, you and Loki are in the common area of the compound.

“Thank you, darling,” Loki says, kissing your forehead.

“Ugh, I need to sit down,” you say. You feel a bit woozy from teleporting so far. You sit down on one of the couches. Loki sits down next to you. You lean over and rest your head on his lap.

“That took a lot out of you. I’m sorry,” he says, putting a hand on your head. You groan in agreement and close your eyes.


	8. The Aftermath

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You try to recover from the events that transpired. Loki regrets bringing you to Earth with him.

You and Loki remain on the couch for some time, him sitting on one end of it and you stretched across the rest of it with your head in his lap. You are exhausted, and you drift in and out of sleep as Loki strokes your hair. He rests his chin in his other hand, lost in thought.

When you finally do wake up, you turn your head and look up at him. “What are you thinking?” you ask him sleepily.

“I can’t help but think this is my fault,” Loki says. “I’ve put you – I’ve put _all_ of you in danger.”

“I don’t think it’s just you he wants,” you reply. “You said yourself, there are other stones. Vision has one. Stephen has another.”

“And there are others,” says Loki.

“What does Thanos want with all these stones?” you ask.

“I’m not certain,” says Loki. “Perhaps he needs them to make a weapon. That’s my theory.”

“That would be some weapon,” you say. You sit up on the couch and face Loki. You put your hand on his cheek and look into his eyes. You still see fear in those eyes, and it gives you fear of your own. “Loki…” you say.

Loki puts a finger on your lips. “Don’t say it,” he says.

“But…” you try to explain.

“I know you’re concerned about me. I can’t convince you not to be,” he says. “And I am concerned for you as well. To be honest, I am starting to regret bringing you here with us. If something were to happen to you, I… I don’t know what I would do. I wish I could send you back to Asgard where you would be safe.”

“I wouldn’t be happy there, not without you,” you say, taking his hand in yours. “There’s nowhere I would rather be than right here. We’re in this together.”

Loki gives a hint of a smile. “Yes,” he says, leaning forward and kissing your lips sweetly. “Together.”

The phone in your pocket rings. It’s Tony calling.

“Tony?” you answer. “Are you alright? Where are you?”

“We’re okay, kiddo,” Tony replies. “We’re on our way back. Stephen trapped Thanos in some kind of loop and we were able to get away. But we’re not sure how long he’ll be in there. He’ll definitely show up again soon. What about you? Where are you now?”

“Loki and I are at the compound,” you tell Tony.

“The compound?” Tony says, sounding surprised. “How the hell did you get back there so fast?”

“Magic,” you say, giving Loki a wink.

“Well, stay there,” says Tony. “We’ll be back soon and we can figure out our next move. In the meantime, get some rest.”

“Okay,” you reply, and hit the End Call button. You turn back to Loki. “I don’t suppose you have any ideas?”

“I can think of one thing I would like to do right now,” says Loki. “Take you and run far, far away from here.”

“What about your brother?” you ask.

“My brother?” Loki scoffs. “He can take care of himself.”

“Are you saying I can’t take care of myself?” you say, somewhat teasingly.

“Now, now, I never said that,” Loki replies.

“But you implied it,” you say with a grin.

“I implied nothing,” he says, and pulls you into a kiss. You can’t help but smile as you feel his lips against yours. For a moment, your fear and worry melts away as he puts his arms around you and eases you down onto the couch. You giggle as you lie back and take in his kisses. You wish to yourself that it could be like this all the time and that the outside world didn’t exist.

“Oh, sorry,” says a voice. You and Loki both look up. Natasha is standing there. “I didn’t mean to interrupt,” she says.

“No, it’s okay,” you say as you gently push Loki off of you and return to a sitting position.

“I thought you two were with Tony and Bruce,” says Natasha.

“We were,” you say. “We went to see Doctor Strange, but Thanos showed up.”

“What happened?” says Natasha.

“It was kind of a blur,” you say. “Loki and I had to get out of there quickly, so I teleported us back here. The doctor was able to suspend Thanos in some sort of loop for a while, long enough for Tony and Bruce to get the hell out of there. They’re on their way back now.”

“Good,” says Natasha. She turns to Loki. “What about you? You said Thanos was out to get you. Did he try anything?”

“Nothing I couldn’t handle at the time,” says Loki.

“Natasha,” you say. “It’s not just Loki that Thanos wants. There are other stones beside the Tesseract.”

“I figured as much,” says Natasha. “We need to get our shit together and come up with a plan.”


	9. The Spider

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You and Loki go searching for Thanos, and come across a scene of utter devastation. Spiderman (Peter Parker) joins in the heroics.

Against Tony’s wishes, Loki has taken you into the city to see if he can find Thanos. You asked him to reconsider, but he insisted he wanted to find him. He said he felt responsible for putting the Avengers in danger, so he should be the one to try to get Thanos to leave Earth.

You told him several times that you didn’t think he could have any effect on Thanos, and besides, it wasn’t just him that Thanos was looking for, so how would he be able to get Thanos to leave?

The two of you spend the morning walking up and down the sidewalks, looking for any sign of Thanos, but you find nothing. Come afternoon, you begin to feel bored and somewhat annoyed. “Loki,” you say. “He’s not here. Let’s go back.”

Suddenly, you hear what sounds like an explosion off in the distance. Loki holds up his hand, stopping you. “What was that?”

“It came from that direction,” you say, pointing east. “Let’s go check it out.”

You and Loki head east, and soon you see a plume of smoke a few blocks away. As you get closer to the smoke, it becomes harder to breathe and you have to cover your mouth and nose.

When you get to the source of the smoke, you gasp. An entire building has collapsed and lies in rubble.

“I’m calling the others,” you say, and get out your phone to call Tony.

“Wait,” says Loki. “Who’s that over there?”

You squint to try to see through the smoke better. You can make out the shape of a person, dressed in a red and blue suit with a mask. He is trying to get people to safety.

“I think that’s Spiderman,” you say. “Come on, he needs our help.”

You run into the smoke towards the collapsed building, with Loki following close behind. “Hey, spider!” you call out. “Peter!”

Peter looks up and sees you running toward him. “Who are you?” he says.

You stop in front of him. “My name is [Y/N]. I’m with the Avengers. This is Loki.”

“Oh good! I could use some help,” says Peter. “Help me get these people out of here before the building collapses more.”

“On it,” you say, and rush off to find more people. Loki follows you.

“Peter,” Loki calls out. “What caused all this?”

“That big purple dude showed up again,” Peter yells back.

“Did you see where he went?” Loki yells.

“No,” Peter replies.

“Blast,” says Loki.

You and Loki walk over the rubble, looking for any signs of life. So much devastation, all around you. Pieces of concrete and rubble everywhere. People sitting on the curb, bleeding. It makes your heart sink.

To think that one person could have caused all this, it fills you with a deep sadness and a fiery rage at the same time. You feel tears starting to form in your eyes, but you’re not sure if it’s from the smoke or your own tangled emotions as you survey the scene.

“Help me,” you hear a voice say.

You look in the direction of the voice, and see a woman, trapped under a concrete slab. “I’m coming,” you say, climbing over the rubble to get to her.

“Help me, please!” the woman cries.

“Hold still,” you tell the woman. “Don’t move.” You stand a few feet away from where the woman is trapped. You hold out your hands and try to move the concrete off of her telekinetically. But the concrete is too heavy for you to move.

You take a couple deep breaths and try again. The concrete vibrates a bit and blue sparks fly from it, but it doesn’t move.

“I can’t do it,” you say to Loki. “It’s too heavy.”

“Let me help you,” says Loki, stepping over the rubble towards you. He stands next to where you are and takes your hand. “Come on,” he says to you. “Together.”

You concentrate as hard as you can on the concrete on top of the woman. You hold out your free hand, Loki still holding onto the other. Blue sparks fly from your fingertips. Slowly, the slab begins to rise. You slowly move it off to the side, placing it gently on the ground.

“I knew you had it in you,” Loki says, squeezing your hand. You look at him, wondering if he had actually helped you or not.

“My legs,” cries the woman. “I think they’re broken.”

“I’ve got her,” you say to Loki. You bend down and slowly pull the woman out of the hole she’s in. Peter comes running up to help. Together, you and Peter carefully carry the woman over the rubble. Loki follows the two of you.

You and Peter bring the woman over to the curb, where there is an ambulance waiting. Paramedics rush over to tend to the woman.

One of the paramedics looks up. “Who are you guys?” he says.

“Not important,” you say.

“Thanks,” Peter says to you and Loki. “I think we got everybody.”

“This was Thanos?” you ask Peter, gesturing at the rubble.

Peter tilts his head in confusion. “Who?”

“Big purple dude,” you say.

“Oh, yeah,” says Peter. “Him and few other dudes. They took the building down far too easily.”

“Do you know where they went?” you ask him.

“No,” says Peter.

“Hard to believe all this destruction was caused by only a few,” you say. “And what they did to all these innocent people… it makes me so angry.” You try not to let any tears rise to the surface.

“Me too,” says Peter.

“If you’ll excuse us,” Loki says, taking your hand again, “[Y/N] and I have some more work to do.”

You hear a strange noise and turn around. “Um, Loki?”

Loki and Peter turn around as well. “Oh crap,” says Peter as Thanos towers above the three of you.


	10. The Rage

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your anger gets the better of you as you try to confront Thanos, but it doesn’t go so well.

“You son of a bitch!” you yell at Thanos as you rush in his direction. Your hands glow blue with flame and you feel the fiery rage inside.

“[Y/N], wait!” you hear Loki yell.

Thanos sees you coming. “Well, well, what have we here?” he chuckles. “This puny mortal seeks to destroy me.”

You hurl a fireball at Thanos, hitting him in the chest but doing no damage at all. You stop in your tracks, breathing heavily, mere feet away from him.

You know that Thanos is too large and heavy for your telekinesis to have any effect on him. You wish for a moment that you were able to conjure a portal like Doctor Strange was able to do, to send Thanos into oblivion, even for a short time.

Your rage is intense, like a wildfire burning inside you, out of control. You reach down and touch the ground, setting it on fire. The flames spread in the direction of Thanos. Soon he is surrounded by a circle of blue flames.

You are suddenly aware of Loki standing behind you, watching the scene unfold. You wonder if he’ll do anything. You don’t dare turn around though, not for a second. You focus only on Thanos.

Thanos walks through the flames like they weren’t even there. He stands right in front of you, looking down at you. You stand your ground, holding your hands out, waiting for him to make the next move.

“[Y/N],” you hear Loki yell to you. “Get back!”

Thanos’ huge arm swings down in an attempt to knock you backward. You see it coming, and quickly disappear, only to appear a few feet away.

“Annoying little mortal, aren’t you?” says Thanos, turning around to face you again.

“Try me,” you say, and hurl another, larger fireball. This one bounces off his head, leaving a small burn mark on his helmet.

Thanos touches his head in the spot where the fireball hit him. But instead of looking at you, he looks at Loki, standing a few feet away.

“God of mischief,” Thanos says. “If I cannot get what I want from you, then I shall destroy everything you love. Starting with her.”

His arm reaches out in your direction again. This time, you aren’t quick enough. You feel the heaviness of his hand as he punches you directly in the chest.

“ _No!_ ” you hear Loki cry out as you feel yourself flying backwards through the air. It feels like an eternity that you’re flying, floating, not knowing where you’re going. You see the street beneath you, and vaguely see Loki watching you, a look of sheer horror on his face.

Finally, the ground comes up to meet you. You hit the pavement with a sickening thud. All the air leaves your body. You hear something crack. The dust kicks up around you as you land among the rubble. You feel excruciating pain. Every part of your body feels bruised or broken. 

You can’t move. It’s too painful. You lie on the ground, surrounded by the rubble, just trying to breathe. You close your eyes. You hear the chaos around you, voices shouting, dull thuds of concrete hitting the ground, the pounding of Thanos’ footsteps as he walks away triumphant. You vaguely feel a few drops on your face as it starts to rain lightly. 

You think to yourself, as you lie in the street, that the pain you are feeling is eerily similar to how you felt after a beating when you were a child. Your mind goes back to the day you escaped the house and ran to the bus station. You remember meeting Steve. He asked you where you were going. You said you didn’t know, that you just wanted to get far away. You remember him hugging you and saying he was going to take care of you.

You wish he was here now.

“[Y/N],” you hear Loki’s voice say. You open your eyes and see him kneeling over you. “Oh gods, are you alright?”

“Loki,” you say weakly, reaching up to try to touch him.

“Oh hell, this is not good,” says Loki. “We need to get you out of here.”

You can’t say anything. You just nod and keep trying to breathe, the pain seeping into every crevice in your body. You close your eyes again, trying to tune out the pain and only feel the coolness of the raindrops and the safety of Loki’s presence.

“This is my fault,” Loki says.

You open your eyes again. “No,” you try to say, but the word gets stuck in your throat. The world around you starts to blur. You feel Loki’s arms surround you, his long hair brushing your face as he leans close to you.

“ _Ingrid_ , my love,” he says, invoking your Asgardian name. “Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me.”

You reach up and touch his cheek. His beautiful eyes are full of tears. You smile weakly.

His face is the last thing you see before everything goes black.


	11. The Journey

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> You have a very strange dream while you are unconscious.

You are in your favorite place, the gardens of the Asgard palace. The sky is a beautiful shade of cerulean blue with just a few white, fluffy clouds. You can hear the delightful song of birds in the trees. The sun shines warmly on your face as you relax near the edge of the fountain.

You have a glass of wine in your hand. You take a sip and breathe in the scent of roses and lilacs from the nearby bushes. You take another sip, finishing the last of the wine in the glass. You hold out the glass at arm’s length. Blue flames engulf it.

You toss the burning glass into the fountain, and the water ignites. You step back and admire the glow.

“Please don’t burn down the garden, darling,” you hear Loki’s voice say behind you. You smile, snapping your fingers, and the flames die out.

You turn around, expecting to see Loki standing there. But he is not.

“Loki?” you call out. “Where are you?”

“I’m here,” he says. But you cannot see him anywhere.

“Stop playing tricks,” you say.

“No,” he says. “No tricks. Not this time.”

“Then where the hell are you?” you demand.

No reply. You walk around the garden, looking for him. You look behind bushes, around trees, and even in the water of the fountain. But he is nowhere. You begin to worry, to feel that old anxiety creeping back in.

“Loki,” you say, trying not to sound too desperate. “I’m… getting scared.”

“Hey there, kid,” you hear Steve’s voice say. “Why so scared?”

“Steve?” you call out. But you cannot find him either.

“Come on, let’s get you to a safe place,” Steve’s voice says.

“Steve!” You are near tears now. “Where is everybody?!”

“Don’t be frightened,” you hear another voice say, this time a woman’s. “You are safe here with me, my _Ingrid_ , my beautiful daughter.”

You are astonished. This is the first time you’ve ever hear your true mother’s voice that you can remember. “Mother!” you cry out. But once again, there is no one there.

You continue to look throughout the garden for someone, anyone, but there is no one around. You are completely alone.

You run back to the palace. Perhaps Loki, or Thor, or your mother or even Steve is there.

You climb the stairs to the palace entrance, but the doors are barred shut. You knock hard upon the door, hoping someone will let you in. But there is no answer. You pound the door harder, making your hand ache, but no one comes.

“Someone, anyone, please!” you cry out. “Let me in!” The tears start to roll down your cheeks.

You collapse in a heap at the base of the door, sobbing.

“Loki,” you cry. “Please help me.”

“I told you, my love, I’m right here,” you hear his voice say. You look around frantically, but he is still nowhere to be seen.

Or is he?

You look off in the distance and think you see someone standing there. The figure is shadowy, difficult to discern. You rise up off the ground and start to walk towards the figure.

“Loki?”

The figure does not move as you approach. As you get closer, you think you can make out Loki’s features. His hair, his eyes, his lips… oh, you so want to kiss those lips.

Suddenly the garden starts to dissolve around you, spinning in a kaleidoscope of colors. Loki disappears from sight.

You are disoriented and frightened. “What is going on?” you yell.

The colors quickly fade and you find yourself inside a dark tunnel. You look around but can’t seem to find any light. The floor feels damp and cold under your feet.

“Loki!” you cry out.

Someone, something starts pulling on you, trying to get you to go in a certain direction. You can’t fight the pull; you have no choice but to move with it. You let it pull you forward, slowly at first, then faster. Soon the walls of the tunnel are zooming past you at an almost sickening pace.

Then you see a faint light off in the distance, getting closer… closer…

“[Y/N]?”

You slowly open your eyes. You are in the compound, in what appears to be some sort of infirmary.

“There you are.” Your vision is a bit blurry, but you are able to make out Loki’s face as he hovers above you. He is holding your hand, his fingers interlaced with yours. His free hand smooths back your hair.

“What…” you start to say.

“Shhh, don’t talk. You’ve been through hell,” says Loki.


	12. The Mother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As you recover from your injuries, Loki helps you communicate with your true mother.

“Hey kiddo,” says Tony. “Glad to see you’re doing better. I heard Thanos really gave you what-for.”

You smile up at Tony from your infirmary bed. “Yeah,” you reply. “I kind of let my anger get the better of me.”

“Understandable,” says Tony, patting you on the shoulder. “Thanos seems to be having that effect on people.”

“Have there been any more sightings?” Loki asks Tony.

“No,” says Tony. “Not since. Kind of strange, actually. It’s been a week.”

“Weird,” you say.

“He’s up to something,” says Loki. “He wouldn’t just leave. This must be part of his plan.”

“Maybe,” says Tony. He turns to you. “But for now, we need to focus on getting this one here better. How _do_ you feel, anyway?”

You think for a moment. “You know,” you say, “I don’t feel all that bad right now. I have some pain left over in my ribs and legs, but I’m surprised that I don’t feel worse.” You look at Loki sitting next to your bed, and he gives you a smile.

“Well, Cookie, it looks like you may have some healing abilities in there with the rest of them,” says Tony. “I’ll let you rest a bit. Take care of my star pupil, Weirdo,” he says to Loki as he leaves.

“Loki,” you say, “You don’t have to stay. I’m sure you have other things to do.”

“I want to stay,” Loki says.

“OK, fine then,” you say. “Help me get up out of this bed.”

Loki stands up to help you. He puts his arm around you as you slowly get up from the bed. Once you are standing, you turn to face him.

“When I was out,” you say, “I heard you. I saw you.”

“Yes,” says Loki. “I know.”

“You know?”

“I saw what you saw,” he says.

“Then you know I heard my mother,” you say.

“Yes,” he replies.

“Did you know her?” you ask.

“Yes, I knew her,” he says. “She was a servant of Odin and Frigga, my adoptive parents.”

“Loki,” you look into his eyes and take his hands in yours. “Can you… help me find her? I want to tell her something.”

“I can try,” he says. “Sit down.”

You sit down on the bed, looking up at him. He stands in front of you and places his hand on your head.

“Close your eyes,” he says. You do. “Now, concentrate on the voice you heard earlier.”

You think back to the sound of your mother’s voice. For a minute, all you see is darkness. Then, slowly, you begin to see the outline of a figure. She is standing off in the distance, a few yards away from you..

“Mother?” you call out. She does not answer.

You take a few steps closer to her. “Mother?” you say again.

She comes into better view. She is beautiful, tall, with long reddish hair that is streaked with gray. She is wearing a long, pale green dress with silver trim. She looks up and sees you standing there. The corners of her eyes wrinkle as she smiles at you.

“Hello, _Ingrid_ ,” she says.

“Mother!” you cry, hurrying over to her and falling into her arms. “Oh mother, I’ve missed you.”

“And I’ve missed you, my daughter,” she says, giving you a tight hug. “You left me too soon.”

“There’s so much I want to tell you,” you say. “So much has happened.”

“I know,” she says. “I know.”

The tears start to form in your eyes. “Then you know I’ve been back to Asgard, and that I have these abilities, and you know about Loki…”

She laughs. “Yes, my child. Loki is the reason I know.”

You are confused. “What?” you say.

“He has told me everything,” she says. “He told me of when Thor found you, and brought you back home. He told me of your abilities. And he told me of his love for you.”

You are astonished. “But how…”

“My child,” she says. “We don’t have much time. I want you to know that I have always loved you and I never lost hope after you were taken from me.”

“Mother,” you say, taking her hands, tears streaming down your cheeks, “I want to make you proud.”

“You already have,” she says. “By standing up to Thanos.”

“But I…”

“You weren’t victorious, I know,” she says. “But your bravery is what made me proud.”

“Oh mother,” you say. “How I wish you were still here.”

“I am with you, always,” she replies, and starts to fade out of view.

“Mother?” you call out. “Mother, don’t leave. Please.”

But she is gone. You open your eyes and see Loki standing in front of you, a quizzical yet concerned look on his face.

“Did you see her?” he asks.

“Yes,” you reply.

“And?”

You throw your arms around him. “Thank you,” you say, kissing his cheek. “For everything.”


End file.
